1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to field of specification writing. More particularly, the invention relates to a method of automatically generating a technical specification based on information for a construction project. More particularly yet, the invention relates to such a method that automatically generates specifications from information on drawings and provides specification- writing services.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A set of architectural drawings for a construction project contains not only information pertaining to the dimensions and layout of a building and/or site, but also information on the various elements and materials called for in the project. Brief references to these elements and materials are included in so-called “calloffs” on the drawing. Examples of such “calloffs” are roof windows, aluminum windows, brick siding, brick pavers on sand, etc., as can be seen in FIG. 1A. Information relating to the materials to be used, installation and/or inspection procedures, etc. for these calloffs are then specified in detail in the project specification, a separate document. Generally, this information is taken from a standard specification library that includes the specifications for all products or elements admissible for use in a project constructed according to certain industry standards. Thus, for example, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) has a library of construction specifications, as do the Construction Science Research Foundation and numerous commercial, private, and government organizations.
In the conventional specification-writing process, a specification writer goes through the drawings, notes each calloff on the drawings, and then compiles a complete project specification by gathering and editing the specifications from the specification library for all calloffs in the drawings. Understandably, generating the complete project specification for a construction project can be a very time-consuming process. Literally hundreds of individual products or elements may be called for in a project, resulting in a compilation of hundreds of individual specifications. Each specification for a particular element will include the specifications for the various types of the particular element. For example, the specification for unit pavers will include the specifications for all types of unit pavers, such as brick, stone, asphalt, and concrete, including the type of substrate used with the pavers, if applicable. The specification writer, when writing the project specification, will then painstakingly cross out or delete the many paragraphs that refer to elements other than the particular type of paver called for in the drawing. If the calloff is brick paving, the paragraphs relevant to asphalt, stone and concrete pavers will be deleted.
Over the years, efforts at automating the specification process have been undertaken, but have generally met with little success because they typically require that all users of the automated process restrict the terms used in the calloffs to the terms in an approved glossary. This restriction has proven to be difficult for the industry to accept.
Nevertheless, the recent advances in electronic data management technology and telecommunications have provided many tools that can be used to streamline and simplify the standardization process. For example, many commercial, industrial, and government organizations or groups, including the AIA and the U.S. government have compiled their respective library of specifications into standardized base documents in word-processable formats which are downloadable via the Internet or other means. Furthermore, most drawings for construction projects are generated today with the use of a computer-aided drawing (CAD) software. One of the advantages provided by the CAD software is that the calloffs on the drawing are electronically readable. It would be a great advantage to architects, general contractors, and other entities in the construction industry to be able to automatically generate a project specification by taking the calloff data directly from the CAD drawing and linking that data with the relevant electronic base document to generate a project specification that contains the relevant specifications for the particular project and does not contain extraneous information.
It is also the case that construction projects are often very complex projects, with many firms participating in the planning and construction phases. It would be a great advantage to such firms if the project specification could be generated online in a collaborative process, wherein the project specification would be available online for viewing and editing and the many participating firms could provide information that would then also be immediately available online to all project participants.
Prior art discloses software that scans a CAD drawing, retrieves information from the drawing, and puts it in spreadsheet form. EXCELLINK offered by CAD Studio is such software.
Another firm, BSD SpecLink, provides stand-alone software that allows a client to fill out a checklist and generate a specification based on a BSD specification. Despite the recent technological advances, it has not yet been possible to automatically generate a project specification and have it immediately available online for project participants. It has also not been possible to automatically generate a project specification from calloffs on a CAD drawing, nor has it been possible for a client or user at a remote location to amend or supplement a project specification online during an editing phase.
What is needed, therefore, is a method of automatically generating a specification for the various elements or products required in a construction project and providing users at one or more remote locations with immediate online access to the project specification. What is further needed is such a method that will allow the automatically-generated specification to be viewed and edited online, in real-time, in a collaborative process. What is yet further needed is such a method that automatically generates a project specification from calloffs on a CAD drawing or from an online checklist.